Archive for August 2008

Lindsay Lohan’s paternal grandfather, Richard Lohan, died Thursday after a battle with colon cancer, which, according to Michael Lohan, has prompted a truce in the battle between father and daughter that escalated this week.

“Lindsay did reach out to me. She sent me a message this morning. She said, ‘Now papa has found peace and maybe we can find peace in our lives, too.’ ”

Michael used the opportunity to take another swipe at ex-wife Dina Lohan, whom he has publicly accused of being a “two-face” for supposedly fretting about Lindsay’s lifestyle around him and then acting as if everything is okay around their daughter.

“My son Michael called and he was wonderful. He’s coming home to be with me for a fews days. I spoke to Ali and Cody, too. I’m hoping they will come to the wake. I asked her if she’s going to be at the wake, but it sounds like Dina is discouraging her from going. She’s deterring her from going to the wake, to the funeral. I said, ‘It’s only right that you go.’ But Dina hasn’t called, absolutely not. She’s too busy out having fun in the Hamptons.”

Michael Jackson is celebrating his 50th birthday Friday. He says he’s “having a wonderful time, just relaxing.”

“I feel very wise and sage, but at the same time very young,” he said in a phone interview with ABC’s Good Morning America Friday.

When asked how he’ll spend his birthday he said,

“Just have a little cake with my children and we’ll probably watch some cartoons,” he revealed.

The singer told GMA that he would like to release another album soon.

“I am writing all the time,” he said. “I love composing and the whole thing. But I am also raising my children and enjoying it and teaching them to ride bicycles and how to read. I love it.

“I get pretty emotional when I see them having a wonderful time,” he added. “When they are on a ride and they are screaming and they are happy… It makes me emotional, ’cause I see they are having a real good time.”

His 1980 album Thriller is the best-selling LP in history and he’s won 13 Grammy Awards.

Jackson said he can still do his famous dance moves — and “more” — and singled out Chris Brown for following in his footsteps.

He also said he hasn’t received his AARP card yet — “Not that I know of!” he joked. “You never know. They can find you wherever you are.”

Sen. Barack Obama secured a place in history by becoming the first African-American presidential nominee of a major party. He gave his acceptance speech on the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous I Have A Dream Speech.

The King legacy was recalled Thursday by Rep. John Lewis, a veteran civil rights leader who was present when King gave his speech, and by Martin Luther King III, son of the slain civil rights leader.

“For those of us who stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial or who in the years that followed may have lost hope, this movement and this moment is a testament to the power and vision of Martin Luther King Jr.,” Lewis said.Photos Copyrights

Jessica Simpson was slammed by a critic for a “bizarre and often frustrating” performance in Ontario, Canada Wednesday. “It might be unfair calling Jessica Simpson’s show at the Avalon Ballroom Wednesday a train wreck — at some point, a train knows where it’s going,” John Law wrote in the Niagara Falls Review. Law also said Simpson is “still living in a reality show, convinced everyone is so fascinated with her personal life, they’d rather hear her talk than sing.” The concert was more like a “therapy session” for her, he wrote, because she “needs to explain in exhausting detail what every single song is about.” Simpson dedicated a song called You’re My Sunday to boyfriend Tony Romo — and she even discussed flatulence. “I do pass gas a lot,” she told the crowd. “I guarantee it smells like roses.”

Michael Phelps will appear as a VMA presenter and will host Saturday Night Live. Also, this fall he will make a cameo appearance on HBO’s Entourage. No word on the episode or when it will be airing were available. The new season begins Sept. 7.

The rapper T.I., who recorded his album Paper Trail while under house arrest, made chart history as the single Whatever You Like shot up 70 spots to No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100. This sets a new record for the biggest jump to the top of the charts, beating Maroon 5‘s record-setting 63-spot jump for Makes Me Wonder back in May 2007. T.I.’s track went to No. 1 thanks to downloads, selling 205,000 copies in its first week in online stores. Whatever You Like the biggest digital sales debut by a rap artist since Nielsen SoundScan started tracking downloads five years ago.

Mackenzie Philips was released from Van Nuys Jail Thursday after posting $10,000 bail, E! News has confirmed. The 48-year-old actress-singer was brought to the facility Wednesday and booked on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance after admitting to officers she had a “drug problem”—and was found to be holding small amounts of both cocaine and heroin while trying to get through security at Los Angeles International Airport.

Katy Perry apparently wants to kiss a female celebrity during her performance on the VMAs on Sept. 7. E! news reports that MTV want it to be Lindsay Lohan. “Producers are really working hard on it,” a source told E!. “They’d love it to be Lindsay, and they’re actually going to ask.”

Michael Lohan feels the need to respond to his daughter Lindsay and Samantha Ronson’sstatements about him. He tells ABCNews.com:

“Who’s out of control? Whose life is out of control? Give me a break. Going from place to place, being dragged around by Samantha so she can make more money off of Lindsay being there when she spins…She’s gone from making $7 million to less than a million a movie. Who’s out of control?

“I go to church,” he continues. “I go and help people in rehab. That’s control. How can she say I’m out of control? If they’re going to say I’m lying, I’m out of control, I’m going to show that they’re lying and they’re out of control.”

For good measure Michael brings his ex-wife into the drama:

“Samantha is one of the biggest problems in her life,” Michael says. “That’s what Dina told me. I’m reacting on what Dina said, but then Dina steps out of the picture because she wants to look like the good guy.”

“Dina’s a two-face,” he continues. “She wants to try to look good and stay on Lindsay’s good side instead of being a good parent. I don’t give two hoots about my relationship with Lindsay as a friend. One day she’s going to turn around to me and tell me, ‘Daddy, you were right.'”

Michael claims he has text messages and recorded phone conversations with Dina and Lindsay to prove he’s the good guy.

Tune in next time for the next episode of The Lohan’s Media Spectacle.

“I have voluntarily entered a facility for the treatment of sex addiction,” the actor says in an exclusive statement. “I ask for respect and privacy for my wife and children as we deal with this situation as a family.”

Duchovny won a Golden Globe award for his role as an over-sexed struggling writer in Showtime’sCalifornication.

“All of us at Showtime wish David and his family the best during this very private time,” Richard Licata, the network’s executive VP of Corporate Communications, said in a statement to E! News.

Duchovny has been married to actress Téa Leoni since 1997. They have two children.